Karnataka may release Cauvery water to T.N.

By S.K. Ramoo

BANGALORE, AUG. 29. Karnataka is likely to respond positively to the request made by the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Ms. Jayalalithaa, for the release of Cauvery water for saving the standing Kuruvai crop in the Cauvery delta. The State had, in the past, always responded positively to such requests made by Tamil Nadu.

The Chief Minister, Mr. S.M. Krishna, reacting to Tamil Nadu's requests, had expressed the State's inability to release water on the basis of the calendar stipulated by the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal by pointing out that inflows into the Cauvery basin reservoirs this year were low compared to the average over the past 10 years.

Karnataka is facing a severe drought because of the extensive dry spell with several parts of the State facing acute water scarcity, both for irrigation and consumption. Sowing was delayed in many areas because of the weak and erratic South-West Monsoon. The Central study team, which toured the drought- affected regions, is yet to submit its findings to the Union Government.

Following the pressure exerted by the Tamil Nadu Government, which reportedly dispatched three letters to the Centre, the Union Water Resources Ministry has convened a meeting of the Cauvery Monitoring Committee, headed by the Prime Minister, Mr. A.B. Vajpayee, on September 6 in Delhi.

Mr. Krishna is yet to finalise a date for meeting the Tamil Nadu Irrigation Minister and the Chief Secretary. According to the Water Resources Minister, Mr. H.K. Patil, Tamil Nadu has demanded the immediate release of 11 tmcft water for saving the kuruvai crop. Karnataka has disputed Tamil Nadu's claim that it had released only 55 tmcft water since June.

Mr. Krishna's political detractors are critical of his rather ``defensive'' posture, while reacting to the demand made by Ms. Jayalalithaa. They felt that he should have been more assertive considering the ``helpless'' situation Karnataka is placed in. The tribunal had prescribed that during a period of deprivation, the distress should be shared equally among all riparian States, and evolved a formula for meeting such contingencies. Political leaders in Karnataka, irrespective of party affiliations, have perceived Tamil Nadu's demand for the release of water at the present juncture as ``unreasonable'' when the State is facing a severe drought.

Meanwhile, the State unit of the BJP has sent a telegram to the Prime Minister stating that Karnataka should not be unduly pressured to release water to Tamil Nadu, when it was experiencing a drought.

'No formal word from Karnataka'

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Section  : National
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